Press release
Tommy’s launch new range
of pregnancy vitamins
Strictly embargoed until 1st September 2008
Tommy’s have launched a brand new range of vitamins that hope to be the
perfect nutritional supplement for mums-to-be. Tommy’s vitamins are based on
scientific evidence based research, formulated to help women have a healthy
baby.
Two vitamin formulations have been produced with the aim of reducing the risk of
insufficient intakes of micronutrients in pregnant women due to an inadequate
diet. The two formulations are: Tommy's multivitamin, minerals and folic acid and
Tommy's multivitamin, minerals, folic acid and fish oils (Omega 3). Both packs
will be sold exclusively through Boots’ stores.
Jane Brewin, Tommy’s Chief Executive said, “This is Tommy’s first ever product
launch and it’s a tangible result of what our medical research can actually
achieve. Tommy’s want to help women have a healthy pregnancy so what better
way than to help them from conception and beyond. Also, a proportion of each
pack of vitamins sold will also come back to Tommy’s to fund further research
into pregnancy complications, so women buying the vitamins will be helping other
women too.”
Tommy’s London Research Centre based at St. Thomas’ Hospital conducted the
research. Tommy’s Professor, Lucilla Poston said:
“Tommy’s new multivitamin supplement is designed to provide reassurance to
those pregnant women who may, despite their best intentions fail to eat an
adequate diet. This may be because of a busy lifestyle, pre-existing dietary
preferences, nausea, vomiting or commitments that prevent them from eating
well. Whatever the reason, this supplement provides a safety net for these
women. It does not provide a substitute though, as there are many health
advantages of an optimal diet over and above those provided by micronutrients.”
Both formulations contain what Tommy’s researchers believe to be the optimum
combination, which will include: Folate, Vitamin A (beta-carotene), Vitamin D,
Iron and other essential vitamins and minerals:
Folate
Folate or Folic acid is prescribed as a 400µg/day supplement in normal, healthy
pregnant women because clinical trials have proved that this significantly reduces the
risk of neural tube defects in the child 1. There is also a great deal of evidence that
good folate status reduces the risk of fetal growth restriction, pre-term birth and other
adverse pregnancy outcomes. There is a significant proportion of the UK population
1
especially young women of reproductive age that consumes less than the
recommended amount of folate.
Vitamin A (Beta- Carotene)
Vitamin A is very important for the development of the baby. However, vitamin A
from animals in the form of retinol can cause severe mutations and pregnancy
loss when consumed in very high doses during early pregnancy. Normally this is
only found in women who have very high dietary intakes and who take a vitamin
supplement containing retinol, as can be found in some vitamin supplements or
cod liver oil. During pregnancy, however, it is advisable to give vitamin A in the
plant-based form, called beta-carotene, as doing so improves vitamin A status
without the risk of any harm to the baby.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is unique amongst the vitamins in that its primary source is not from the
consumption of food, but from sunlight. However, deficiencies occur from inadequate
exposure to the sun which is very common for women in the UK due to the climate,
while this may improve over the summer months for certain sections of the
population, it may not for many especially those who remain covered up with clothing
or spend most of their time indoors 2 .The primary purpose of vitamin D is to enhance
intestinal absorption of calcium and so protect the mother’s own calcium stores from
being depleted.
Iron
Whilst the intestinal absorption of minerals is often unregulated during pregnancy,
many women do become anaemic due to iron deficiency and this can significantly
affect pregnancy outcomes. It has been shown that for those with low iron status at
the beginning of pregnancy, low-dose preventive supplementation from early in
pregnancy is associated with better iron status and pregnancy outcomes than high
dose iron supplementation in late pregnancy and is much better tolerated.3
Both formulations also contain some other essential vitamins and minerals. Notably,
the second formulation contains Docosahexanoic Acid (DHA), which is a fish oil
supplement. Professor Poston continued:
“DHA may be particularly important during pregnancy as it is needed for neural
development of the fetus and for the brain and retina. Although it can be
manufactured from other fatty acids in the body, there is good evidence to
suggest that this conversion process can struggle to produce sufficient amounts
of DHA for optimal fetal development. Some supplementation trials have shown
positive associations between DHA intake and visual acuity and cognitive abilities
in early childhood.4
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) recommends that pregnant women consume at
least one portion of oily fish per week during pregnancy. However, many women
do not include oily fish in their normal diet and so may find this recommendation
hard to follow. The amount of DHA in Tommy’s vitamins’ formulation (200mg per
day) equates roughly to two 120g cans of sardines per week and therefore allows
pregnant women to obtain the recommended amount of DHA without having to
make unwanted changes to their diet. It also avoids any significant risk of
2
contamination from heavy metals such as mercury and arsenic, which has been
suggested to present a risk to unborn babies and is the main reason why the FSA
recommends not eating more than two portions of fish per week during
pregnancy.”
Tommy's multivitamin, minerals and folic acid retail at £3.99 for 30 tablets and
Tommy's multivitamin, minerals, folic acid and fish oils (Omega 3) retail at £9.99
for 30 tablets both packs are on sale exclusively in Boots' stores and online at
www.boots.com. For more information go to www.tommys.org
ENDS
References:
(1) MRC Vitamin Study Research Group. Prevention of Neural Tube Defects:
Results of the Medical Research Council Vitamin Study. Lancet 1991.
338:131–7.
(2) Alfaham M, Woodhead S, Pask G, Davies D. Vitamin D deficiency: a
concern in pregnant Asian women. Br J Nutr 1995;73:881–7
(3) Zhou SJ, Gibson RA, Crowther CA, Makrides M. Should we lower the
dose of iron when treating anaemia in pregnancy? A randomized doseresponse trial. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2007 Oct 10
(4) Dunstan JA, Simmer K, Dixon G, Prescott SL. Cognitive assessment of
children at age 21/2 years after maternal fish oil supplementation in
pregnancy: a randomised controlled trial. Arch. Dis. Child. Fetal
Neonatal Ed., January 1, 2008; 93(1): F45 - F50
NOTES TO EDITOR
For further information about Tommy’s Vitamins or for interviews with
spokespeople, please contact: Atia Islam Talukder atalukder@tommys.org
or call Tommy’s Press Office on 020 7398 3440.
Tommy’s [Let’s talk baby]
From September 2008, Tommy’s, the baby charity will be known as Tommy’s
[Let’s talk baby]. At Tommy’s we believe it is unacceptable that one in four
women loses a baby every year. We want to give every baby the best chance of
being born healthy, so we work to fund medical research into the causes of
premature birth, stillbirth and miscarriage, and provide a free information service
that educates all parents-to-be about health in pregnancy.
Our information service is informed by our medical research and includes a
telephone midwife service, a comprehensive website and free books and leaflets
promoting health in pregnancy. By 2020 we want to halve the number of babies
who die during pregnancy or birth. To talk to a Tommy’s midwife call 0870 777
30 60 or email midwife@tommys.org or log on to www.tommys.org
3